


These Robes are My Shackles

by TealLuney



Category: Pocket Monsters SPECIAL | Pokemon Adventures
Genre: (slight) supernatural, Alternate Universe - Real World, Before Modern Era, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-02
Updated: 2016-02-02
Packaged: 2018-05-17 20:16:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5884075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TealLuney/pseuds/TealLuney
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gold wanted to see. He wanted the truth. He wanted freedom.</p>
<p>But it comes at a cost.</p>
            </blockquote>





	These Robes are My Shackles

**Author's Note:**

> > “Boy, you’re in a hurry.”
>> 
>> “If you knew what I’m looking at, you’d be in a hurry too.”
> 
> ~~
> 
> Heyo \o/
> 
> This was originally my literature project (that was inspired by Pokéspe in the first place), but I’ve adapted it into the ‘true’ form of the story I originally wanted to write! ~~(gay shit)~~
> 
> I wanted to experiment writing with the different senses to describe multiple scenes, so I guess this turned out okay!

There was a beautiful scenery that one could see by sitting near the edge of a cliff. High up, secluded by the endless trees behind it, and an extremely valuable find. One could witness the quaint suburban life from here: houses, commercial buildings, trees and shrubbery; and though the residents were as small as an ant from this distance, they were all still worth watching, as every individual had a place to go, something to do, and when it all added up together it painted a pretty picture of human life.

Gold came here often, sitting precariously on the edge of the cliff, swinging his legs on a carefree manner, dangling from the great heights. He admired the view, but not for its aesthetic beauty.

After all, he couldn't see.

He wore a pure-white blindfold, tied at the back of his head, where the remaining cloth extended halfway down his chest, flowing behind him. It covered his eyes, or where his eyes would've been, so the only way he could see was through the means of an intangible, unidentifiable “aura”. It sounded insane, but it worked, somewhat. There were speculations that the Insighted like him didn't even have eyes, and Gold wasn't entirely sure himself. To him, his eyes were neither open nor closed, but in the perpetual state of emptiness. They served as detectors of light, but even with it, they couldn't form a picture.

The blindfold did that. It was, apparently, an enchantment of some kind, though Gold found it hard to believe.

There would also always be a gentle breeze on that cliff, usually in the direction of the cliff and it would blow his hair backwards, which was surprisingly therapeutic. A cape fluttered in the breeze behind him, lifting it up a little, a relief to Gold now that the wind could travel around his body.

It was currently that time of evening when Gold could feel the aura of the street lamps start to flicker on, even when the sun rays still lingered from the edge of the sky, which wasn't completely dark yet. It was an atmosphere of a mix of day and night, that Gold liked.

Like a world descending into peace, but still bustling with activity.

Gold sighed, half of content and half of wistfulness. He reached a hand out to the sky, covering the sunset rays, and then playing with blocking the light in different ways. On that arm, his hand was gloved, one that, at first glance, would look like dark blue cloth with white streaks.

Upon closer inspection, the white streaks were actually a meticulous pattern of lines, arranged in a way reminiscent of an alchemy symbol. Gold knew, because he would sometimes trail the discrepancies with his fingers and wonder what it would look like. It felt just like the one on his blindfold. Except, the pattern was only semi-visible there, due to the two materials being nearly the same colour.

Gold wondered what colour even was.

_Another day of living,_ he thought bitterly, _another day of not knowing._

**~~~~**

According to his Eyesighted friends, colour was what distinguished things from each other. Not much different from the way he could discern distance or shape, though those weren't as hard to explain.

It wasn't like those of Insight couldn't see completely. They just did so, without their eyes. The same way animals used sonar echolocation to get their bearings in the dark, the Insight used the echoes of their aura, aided by their other senses. This meant that they could see objects in three-dimension, even with texture, but not with colour. And it wasn't like an image actually popped up. It was just... there.

That was the way of life, for those of Insight, the people who had forgone sight of what they called superficial beauty, in favour of inner peace.

A cult, some might say. But they were more of a religion; renowned, respected. Or perhaps an exclusive society of specially gifted folk.

Aura echolocation was a skill. The Elders, who were extremely practiced the art, were even able to discern colour with it.

But Gold didn't want to wait till he was old and crinkly to find out how colour looked like. It may not even truly be colour, and just some form of filtered information like with his current aura echoes.

Gold wanted to know how it was like to have normal sight, like everyone else. He realised the utter futility of trying to treat his Insight like an advantage, or an edge over them, it wasn't like abstaining from sight was as honourable as the rest of his people made it out to be. It wasn't exactly a hindrance either, but it was dull. Boring and uninteresting. Served its purpose of making sure Gold didn't bump into things, or letting him see outlines of bodies, and their other minor features like hair, lips or eyes. There honestly wasn't much to show off in the first place.

He wondered why people had different 'favourite colours'. He wondered how people could see through glass. He wondered how people could discriminate those of different skin tones. Heck, people were of different colour? What did it even mean?

No one in the Insight society was particularly bothered by his questions. Those were questions of curiosity. But when it became entertaining the notion of taking off his blindfold and using Eyesight, it became blasphemy.

Gold couldn't exactly blame them. This sightless lifestyle was their entire existence, so of course they would hate the thought of getting rid of it. It was so simple to do, to remove the blindfold with a single hand, that it made them feel so fragile, so much they felt the need to make it a crime.

**~~~~**

Gold was born from a wealthy family, not as renowned as some of the big names out there, but respected enough to be recognised as of nobility. He was an aristocrat, but he hung out with the commoners, both of Insight and Eyesight. He showed off a lot, but it was the norm for people of his status to do so, so much that the commoners ignored it in favour of his redeeming qualities.

Gold had a strange charisma. He was blunt, but also caring, and liked to help the ordinary folk with their daily work at no cost. He made many friends that way, he claimed, and he wasn't lying. He was selfless, always putting himself in harm's way just to save his friends. His father got upset at him often due to it, though his mother didn't mind, and neither did her only child.

Because of this novel charm he possessed, Gold easily attracted the attention, if not romantic interest, of many girls. He was notorious for having open relationships, occasionally, but that didn't seem to deter most people.

What's there not to love about a rich, handsome, good-hearted guy who didn't even need his eyes to see?

On the contrary, it was Gold who sometimes wished that he wasn't born in a family of Insight, and was born to ordinary, Eyesighted people instead, where he wouldn't have been baptised, with a blindfold covering his eyes even as a tiny baby.

Those few seconds of true sight... Gold wondered how it was like, for a young, newborn version of himself.

In the midst of his contemplation, he heard the thumping of footsteps advancing towards him from behind.

He saw a figure slightly shorter than himself, but seemed around his age (of 19). Gold saw long hair, which suggested a girl, but Gold wasn't too quick to judge.

He turned around, just as a courtesy.

“Hey,” he greeted the stranger, who Gold saw was also of Insight, as evident from the long blindfold that billowed behind.

“Hello.” It was a male voice, and Gold realised after a while that he had noticed him before, walking around town, sometimes alone, but most times accompanied by an older girl he knew from church.

 “What's your name?” he asked.

“...it's Silver,” he replied, his voice calm, but not uninterested. “I know you're Gold.”

“Well, of course you do,” said Gold proudly. “I'm known all over town.”

“Hmph. Blue told me that I should make new friends,” he explained without needing a prompt. “She's been telling me for years. I guess you seem... nice enough to be friends with.”

“Oh, I am,” said Gold with a grin. “I'll have you know I am loyal to my friends. I've got your back.”

“Good,” said Silver, “Now Blue will stop bothering me.”

“You underestimate her.”

Both of them chuckled.

“Since we're friends now,” said Gold, “Let's hang out around town or something. Maybe get a drink.”

“...uh?” Silver seemed genuinely confused.

“Come on,” laughed Gold. “If we’re friends now, we’ve got to have some kind of orientation programme. Unless you don't want to...”

Silver slowly mulled over his invitation, as if choosing the wrong option would set off a death trap.

“Sure,” he finally decided, shrugging.

“Aye.” Gold grabbed Silver by the arm, who flinched in shock before being dragged away.

**~~~~**

Silver didn't talk much, but he was fun to be around with. Gold liked the long-haired loner's company; he would sometimes go on and on about himself for minutes on end, but Silver never seemed to mind. Perhaps, Gold thought, Silver actually preferred it this way.

It wasn't like Gold didn't want to hear about Silver at all, in fact it was quite the opposite. It took him a lot of convincing to open up to Gold, and whenever he did, he never chose anything too significant about his life. It was always little facts about himself, like his favourite food, favourite music, how he met Blue. Gold remembered them by heart, but always longed for something more, like his family background, his thoughts about the world, and even of life; wild abstract, and crazy ideas that Gold wanted to know Silver's opinion of.

Gold's other friends began to tease him for showing so much interest in the social outcast, but he didn't care too much. He was utterly relentless - Silver had to open up to him completely one day. And somehow, it managed to happen.

The two of them hung out at the beach pretty often. Gold loved the feeling of the water lapping at his feet, but he never once thought to reach out to grab it with his hands.

“What are you doing?” asked Silver.

“Nothing,” Gold replied, but bent down to the waves as he did.

He reached a hand out, dipping his fingers into the water that faded away and back again as the seconds went by. He scooped up some water, feeling a few grains of sand sitting on his palm, and let it trickle back into the sea. He repeated this action, this time letting it flow into his other hand, where it, too, trickled through the gaps in his glove. Gold knew that water made clothing feel clammy and wet, but his glove didn't. It was the mark of high-class, wealthy folk like him, of course it was made of a special material.

Out of curiosity, he dipped his bare hand in again and sipped the water. He lurched back immediately, cringing from the intensity of the taste.

“Did you just try to drink seawater?”

Silver said this in a teasing tone, but Gold simply laughed in his usual, good-hearted manner.

“It has a very... special taste, you should try some,” he said, in a voice that was almost scarily serious.

“No thanks. I don't want to kill my taste buds.”

Gold grinned. He focused back on the sea. The gentle crashing of the waves rang in his ears, never ceasing, and a wind blew from behind him, blowing his hair frontwards, tickling his face slightly.

“You really like the beach, huh...” said Silver. “You come here a lot.”

“Well, who wouldn't? Don't you think this here's a great place?”

Silver nodded. “Yeah. It's peaceful, quiet.”

Gold got up, but didn't turn his head away from the sea. They stood in silence.

“Don't you ever wonder about the way water just... flows... and constantly moves... don't you ever wonder how it all looks like?”

“With Eyesight?”

“Yeah. ...ha, it's funny. I keep thinking up questions that would make the church want to lynch me.”

“I think it's interesting.”

Gold was surprised. Silver would usually just agree in silence. “Really?”

“Yeah. I don't know, it's just... different, I guess. Sometimes I hate how church forces you to act and think in a certain way. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, right?”

“...Silver...”

“I mean, I don't need to know how water looks like,” he added in a panic, “But I understand you wanting to. I guess even I am a little curious...”

“Heh. I like the way you think.”

There was an awkward pause, but both ended up laughing.

“How do you think water actually looks like?” Gold asked him.

“...hm... uh, soft, maybe?”

“That's silly. How can something _look_ soft?”

“I don't know. Maybe it's horrible to look at. Maybe it's... bumpy.”

“Doesn't feel bumpy, though. Try to touch it...”

The rest of the day was spent on a heated debate, but one that Gold appreciated, greatly.

**~~~~**

“Wow... This is really... calming.”

“Really? ...You do know that there's a drop of about five hundred metres right in front of us, right?”

They were sitting at Gold’s favourite spot, at the cliff hanging over the small town.

“...right... Well, it's still relaxing.”

“More like exhilarating. It almost feels like we're flying. Doesn't it excite you?”

“Wow, I feel like I'm having the time of my life right now.”

The two of them cracked up.

Gold sighed. This was the first time he had ever brought anyone to the cliff. It was like his personal retreat away from the society he felt so much pressure under.

They sat next to each other off the edge of the cliff, swinging their legs. Gold tried to match his swinging rhythm with Silver's, but being incredibly obvious as he attempted to, causing Silver to sigh, though with a smile.

They were becoming fast friends. It may have been a little awkward at first, but they now shared a sort of mutual understanding, and so they sat at the cliff, wordlessly moving their legs in sync, laughing as they did.

Gold realised just how he really, really liked to spend time with Silver, so much that he had managed to somehow bring him to a place he previously considered sacredly private, without even being aware of it.

“Hey, Silver.”

“Hm?”

“Do you like me?”

“... _sorry?_ ”

Gold only just thought about what he was saying, and waved a hand in embarrassment.

“I meant,” he quickly corrected himself, “Do you like spending time with me?”

“Oh, uh... yeah, I do.”

“Why?”

“...I... think you're fun to hang out with.”

“Oh... well, I really like spending time with you too.”

The next minute or so was spent in an extremely awkward silence.

_Maybe I shouldn't have asked that question..._ thought Gold.

“Why?” Silver suddenly asked.

“Huh?” Gold had completely lost track of their conversation.

“Why do like spending time with me?”

“Why not?”

“It's sort of... unexpected. Because no one has ever liked to spend time with me.”

“...Come on, don't put yourself down like that. There's Blue.”

“Well, I guess... but it's because she's been taking care of me for as long as I can remember... I'm not someone to hang out with, or have fun, or...”

“I think you're plenty fun.”

“Really?”

“Yep.”

“...oh. Thank you, I guess.”

Gold laughed, though a little awkwardly. Silver began chuckling to himself as well.

“What's so funny?” asked Gold, curious.

“My hands,” Silver replied, raising his palms slightly up at Gold. “I placed them on the rocks, and my hands feel all grimey now.”

Gold laughed as well. “I made that mistake a few times before. Here, you just have to - “

He grabbed Silver's hands, and began to rub lightly on his palms.

“You have to get rid of it like this, then it'll come off more quickly - “

Gold suddenly realised that Silver had gone completely rigid and paused abruptly. Realising what he was doing, he pulled his hands away, feeling his face burning up with embarrassment.

_Oh no. Oh no no no._ Gold was so used to doing such things to girls he liked that he had subconsciously done it to Silver, too. It was just that the guy gave him such a similar feeling, so much that he just–

“Sorry,” he blurted lamely. “I didn't mean to...”

“It's fine...”

“It's just that, your hands, uh, are really soft.”

_Gold,_ he scolded himself, _what are you even saying?!_

“T-thanks, I guess...”

“Can... can I touch them again?”

Gold was convinced his mouth now had a mind of its own; and now his heart was beating incredibly fast, more of in anxiety of Silver revolting at him than anything else.

“...sure, I guess...” murmured Silver, his voice barely audible. Gold couldn't see his expression clearly, but Silver didn't appear to hate him now, or anything of the like.

This time, he was more hesitant, but slowly held his hands, wrapping them by the fingers, brushing them with his own. They were so soft, yet at the same time so toned around the edges from its slimness, and that was when Gold felt how slender his fingers were.

He felt a strange, bizarre feeling he couldn't quite put a label on, but knew that it seemed to make his insides fuzzier than they already were.

What was this? Was he going through puberty again? What was with this butterflies crap? Why now?

And why him?

Silver's face showed no real signs of abnormal expression. Except for the fact that his lips were quivering, and his whole body seemed to shake a little.

“Sorry,” said Gold suddenly, pulling away again. “I-I mean, if you're not comfortable–”

“It's fine,” said Silver quickly. “I... I think it's nice.”

Gold paused for a long time, trying to process what Silver was saying, then wondering why he had said it; either way, he ended up confused.

“...Gold?” Silver now asked, a sliver of hesitation in his voice.

“Yeah?”

“Do _you_ like me?”

Silence.

“...I don't know....”

_Why the hell did you say that,_ Gold scolded himself again. _What was that supposed to mean?_

Gold heard Silver take a deep breath.

“I...”

Gold felt strands of hair gently fall on his shoulder, followed by a warm, solid frame that seemed to fit perfectly in the crook of his neck.

“I like you.”

Gold was rendered speechless. It wasn't the first time someone had confessed to him, but for once, he didn't know what to say. Yet, he didn't push Silver away.

Instead, he turned his body slightly to face him, adjusting Silver's small frame into his arms.

This feeling...

For some reason, holding Silver like this felt so right.

But there had to be something else, something like...

Gold held out a hand to caress Silver's jawline, and felt the guy's body tensing up again, before letting Gold grab onto the side of his face, letting him guide him up until their lips made contact.

Gold kissed him, pouring his soul into the kiss without even trying, and for in that brief, fleeting moment, it was like all his troubles were melting away.

Eventually, their lips pulled apart. Gold held onto both sides of Silver's jaw with both of his hands, gently stroking his face.

This feeling.... it felt so surreal. It felt like nothing he had ever experienced before.

And he wasn't willing to let it go just like that.

**~~~~**

Gold realised that it was the first time he had ever earnestly, truly fell in love with somebody.

Nobody compared. No one could ever compare to Silver, at least in his eyes. He saw in him what others tended to overlook easily - a sharp mind, clarity, sensitivity, lightning-quick reflexes; to his opinionated viewpoints, his subtle emotions, down to every minute expression.

Not many knew of their relationship, but the friends who did silently acknowledged their sincerity and tenacity. The two discovered that they tended to disagree on many things, yet there was never much conflict. If they had something in common, it was their shared openness towards each other.

Perhaps what mattered most was the chemical reaction that had seemed to immediately start the moment they met each other. Such feelings and emotions kept bubbling, but Gold kept it bottled up in a jar, until it had no choice but to finally burst.

Chemistry like this was hard to find, in Gold's opinion. It was something precious, to be treasured and cherished. Because the feeling of holding Silver felt like he was holding warm coals instead, lighting some sort of hidden flame within him; that feeling, was irreplaceable. To know that Silver loved him as much as he loved Silver filled him with indescribable joy, and security and peace, which was perhaps something he never thought he needed until now.

For the first time in a long while, Gold no longer thought about Eyesight. Where that unfulfilled, empty space was, Silver took residence in now.

Sure, it was something they could never in a million years make public news. There was social stigma against homosexuality, and Gold was an aristocrat who wasn't supposed to settle for anyone less than his own status, so they couldn't ever tell Gold's parents, who had enough trouble with him already.

In a way, Gold disliked the hush-hush nature of their romance, but at the same time he enjoyed the thrill it gave him.

According to the rules the Insight had set in place, they were all to strictly abstain from sex until after marriage.

Not that it mattered to Gold, or to Silver. They could never get married anyway.

And nothing felt better, nothing made him feel more whole, than feeling Silver's small frame fit in his embrace, to feel his burning, naked skin on his own, or plant his lips anywhere on him that he desired. His fingers were always so gentle, even while they clenched the short strands of his hair. Their slenderness seemed to have been weaved delicately into each individual finger, because it felt like pure heaven.

Nothing else mattered, but to have Silver unconditionally by his side.

Nothing.

**~~~~**

_Both of them stand on the cliffside._

_They laugh, and Gold feels himself smile, while Silver does the same._

_He takes in a deep breath, and begins running, alongside Silver, towards the cliff edge. They both jump off, and for a second or so Gold feels the sensation of free-fall._

_Seconds after, they simultaneously spread their wings, and start ascending into the sky._

_They fly freely, as doves, circling around each other, twisting and turning only at will, only at the mercy of the winds, flying high over and into the sunset and beyond..._

Gold woke up with a start.

For a few seconds, his mind remained in a state of simple, thoughtless bliss. Then he began to acknowledge the tangible of the real world, and became aware of his presence, lying on his own bed. He then noticed Silver lying beside him.

Images of his dream flashed across his eyes all at once, and Gold recalled the vivid sensations and emotions that lingered even till now.

He had felt so... happy... so _free..._

It was a poignant feeling, one where he felt like the dream was so amazing that he hated how he had to live in the real world now.

Silver was snoring softly beside him. After a pause of thought, Gold reached his hand out to his face and grazed his soft cheeks.

This was another feeling. The feeling of joy and wholeness, one that reached out enticingly to him.

Somehow, the combination of both feelings irked him, and gave him an unpleasant taste at the back of his tongue.

**~~~~**

“I can't believe this. This is unacceptable.”

Gold saw no incentive to stay in his seat to listen to his father go on and on, but what else could he have done? Walk away, come back eventually and be given this exact same lecture?

His father furrowed his eyebrows, glaring at him in the most sickening, I'm-disappointed-with-your-behaviour look.

“Gold, you are nineteen years old. You are an adult by now. I hoped you would stop fooling around and settle down, but looks like I can't trust you to do anything, can I?”

“Stop fooling around?” hissed Gold. “I'm just living my life. Making good friends, helping good people. Am I wrong?”

“We already have good connections with other families of importance, you do not need to socialise with these poor folk.”

“Oh, I'm sorry, let me rephrase my sentence. I'm making good friends who don't only talk to me because they want my wealth.”

Gold's father stood in stunned silence.

“Gold, please...” reminded his mother, who stood beside her husband. But Gold ignored her advice.

_That shut him up,_ he thought, smug with the bitter satisfaction of outwitting his father.

His father's lips curled into a snarl. “Very good _'friends'_ you make there. Letting this... commoner...” His nose turned up in disgust. “How dare you even... get involved with him... and in _that_ manner...!”

Gold turned his focus back on Silver, who sat in a far corner, at an angle facing away from him and his parents.

“ _Gold, I-_ ” His father sighed, calming down a little. “Gold,” he continued, in a slightly less hostile tone, “Perhaps I never educated you before, but... you're not allowed to have... relations with other men.”

“Oh?” said Gold, raising his eyebrows in mock fascination. “Please, tell me more about your gay-hating ground rules.”

“It is disgusting.”

“You are disgusting.”

“You are to marry into the Berlitz family,” said his father, sternly. “An agreement has already been made.”

“...what? Oh, I see how it is, you're going to sell me off to get more money. I'm cool with it. Totally fine.”

“It is a _final_ decision. And _you_.” He purposefully turned his head at Silver, who remained completely still. “You will not interfere. You will stay far, far away from him, and you will not taint my only son.”

“Leave him alone,” Gold snapped at him. “He did nothing wrong.”

His father sighed exasperatedly.

“Gold, I had sincerely, _with all my heart_ , trusted that you'd calm down after a while, but you just keep getting _worse_ ,” his father continued, while clenching his teeth. “First, you refuse to speak like a proper scholar. Secondly, you make friends of hooligans –”

“At least these 'hooligans' have basic human rights. That's a step above us.”

“See? This is an example of how your 'friends' have been a bad influence on you. It is detrimental to your –”

“You don't even have friends,” Gold retaliated, “That's why you won't understand.”

“Gold, that's enough,” his mother cut in firmly.

“Mum,” cried Gold, “Why are you even trying to defend him?”

“You will not talk to your father like that!”

“Oh yeah?! When did he ever learn not to speak to me like that, though? You only married him to merge family wealth, anyway. You were so conveniently paired up with someone to be forced to love them; what do you know about how _real_ love works?”

“Do not talk back to your mother like that!” boomed his father. “I am already being very tolerant. _Do not push it_.”

“ _Tolerant,_ ” Gold repeated in a mocking tone.

“Gold, I am sick of your insolence!” his father bellowed. “You will follow my orders and settle down, once and for all. This is a warning.”

“Your warning is bullshit. Your 'lecture' is bullshit. This whole system is bullshit,” screamed Gold, “We rich people turn up our noses and pretend to be great people just because we have money. And what does money bring us? What does money bring you? It turns you into a sick little man. Hear that? _A sick little man_ ,” he spat.

“Apologise, _right now_ ,” said his father through his teeth.

“No.” Gold gave him a sickly sweet smile. “I'm done with this shit, you understand? I'm _sick_ of this life!”

In a fit of anger, he tore the buckle of his glove, ripping it off his hand and, with a forceful crack, threw it towards the ground.

“I don't want to associate myself with shitheads who don't know life outside of pointlessly large amounts of cash. You're all fucking idiots. I'm leaving.”

“Gold!” shouted his father, fuming, his face completely red. “You've got some nerve, boy! I forbid you to leave!”

“Try and stop me,” sneered Gold, “Fuckers.”

He stormed out of the house, leaving massive shockwaves of sound reverberating across the whole room. Silently, Silver slid after him.

**~~~~**

“Gold.”

Gold continued to walk away briskly, completely disregarding all awareness of his environment.

“Gold!”

Silver caught up to him, and grabbed him by the shoulder. Snapping out of his trance, Gold turned back to him.

“What do you want?!’

Silver stepped back one foot, sensitive to his mood, as always. Realising this, Gold softened.

“Hey, sorry, Silver,” he sighed wearily, “I’ve... just been going through so much shit recently.”

“Well... I can tell. I saw.”

Gold sighed again.

“Sorry you had to see that. I guess I should’ve known it would end up like this. Getting involved with you like this... I guess it wasn’t a very good idea in the first place.”

As he said it, he realised that he had said the wrong thing. He saw Silver’s lips curl downwards ever so slightly, and knew that it hit him pretty hard.

“Wait, no, I don’t mean it that way... I don’t regret it or anything...”

“I’m sorry,” said Silver, quickly. “I shouldn’t have gotten you into this mess. I know.”

“No, that’s not what I meant – argh!”

He pulled away from their conversation, and ran in the opposite direction angrily.

“H-hey, wait, Gold!”

**~~~~**

Gold didn’t know where he was running to, but he needed to go somewhere. His heavily palpitating heart was telling him to go where he felt the most free, where he could best escape from reality.

The beach.

He approached the shoreline, and his legs gradually slowed down to a steady jog. He stopped in the dead centre of the beach, in between the last patch of grass and the point where the water was barely kissing the sand. The wind blew against his face, his heart still racing and his anger still boiling, he thought about how horrible everything was and how much he just wanted to do what he wanted.

In a dastardly fit of impulse, he ripped off his blindfold.

As he did, his body froze, letting the piece of cloth in his hand slip off and fall onto the beach floor.

From behind, he faintly heard loud, panting sounds finally catching up to him.

“You’re... you're in a hurry,” panted Silver.

“If you knew what I'm looking at...” breathed Gold. “You'd be in a hurry too.”

He wasn't exactly sure what he was looking at, but it was the best thing he had ever experienced. Gold finally saw the sunset for what it was, a bright, crisp yellow circle that glowed slightly around the edges. A red strip of sky settled on the horizon, and above it was a rich shade of blue, dark but bright enough to see its brilliant colour.

And the sea; it was dark, darker blue than the sky, but rippled like an extremely large, flexible piece of cloth, reflecting white specks of light back up at the sky and into his eyes; the surface glistened. He looked down at the waves, as they lapped against his feet, washing over them in intricate pathways and then back again, foaming at the ends to create a perfect white, the colour of his blindfold.

This was colour. This was what it was.

“Gold?” Silver whispered. “What do you mean by that?”

Gold didn't answer. He ran forward to where the waves retreated to, soaking his pants even further, though he didn't seem to mind. He squatted, grabbing fistfuls of the water and letting them dribble down, and for once he witnessed the beauty of the clear, individual beads, merging together and cascading down his palms.

The water calmed down again, and he looked down, and nearly leaped back in shock.

Someone was staring back at him, in the water. He continued looking at the man in the water, mesmerised. The figure was tall, had raven black hair, and shining, amber eyes. It took a while for Gold to realise he was looking at himself.

“Oh my god...” he whispered. Those golden eyes belonged to him, they were locked away by his damned blindfold, just waiting to be discovered. They were... so dazzling....

“Gold?” called Silver again, his heart in his mouth. “Did you... did you do it?”

Slowly, Gold stood up, and turned around to face Silver.

And, wow. His hair was the blazing red of the sun, shimmering in the evening sunset, floating gently in the wind behind him. His facial features were as small as how they had felt. His skin was pale, almost-white, contrasting sharply with his hair.

He didn't know skin could _look_ so soft.

“Silver, you're...beautiful...” he whispered, reaching out, and holding his hands gently.

“I...”

Silver didn't know what to say.

“But I don't need to look beautiful, do I?” he asked, in a hushed voice.

“No, 'course not,” chuckled Gold. “I wonder how do your eyes look under that blindfold...?”

Suddenly, Silver pulled away from him in a quick motion, warily keeping a safe distance away.

“Silver, I'm sorry,” said Gold quickly, ashamed at himself for scaring him.

“I can't believe you...” he whispered. “You know you'd be eternally damned by those people... You know they'd kill you!”

“I'm already halfway in hell,” said Gold bitterly. “All because I fell in love with you...”

“...so am I.”

Gold shrugged. “So honestly, it doesn't matter anymore, does it?”

“...You're an idiot, you know that? Weren't you fine with me like this? ...No, of course you weren’t, what am I even saying...”

He covered his face. “I’m so selfish...”

“I’m the one being selfish,” said Gold. “Letting down my family. Not being who they want me to be, and not even trying to. Instead,” he laughed, “I’m now considered a criminal.”

A silence ensued.

“But why,” Silver gulped. “Why did you have to do this?”

He squatted down to pick up Gold's blindfold.

“If you didn't take this off,” he said, “We would've been perfectly okay together.”

Gold laughed. “My family _hates_ –”

“Fuck your family!” Silver snarled. “We belong together! We could–”

“Silver, I... don't think you understand.” Gold closed his eyes. “If we accept the fact that we can live with our eyes... I mean, it's not wrong, but we were born with them for a reason, right? If we blindly choose to forgo that privilege... I don't think inner peace is achieved like this. I don't think we can ever be truly free.”

“You're crazy,” said Silver, “You're bat-shit insane.”

“If this wasn't the man you fell for,” said Gold, with a sad smile, “Then you didn't fall in love with me.”

“I... I did.” Silver said that, but said nothing more, and buried himself once more in Gold's chest. Gold had no real reason to pull away.

They held that position for a few seconds in silence.

“I'm going.”

Silver looked back up at him. “What?”

“I have to go. It's like you said, I'll be damned if I go back. Burned at a stake, maybe.”

Silver stared blankly at him, as if Gold was talking in a completely foreign language.

For some reason, it was that expression more than anything that stung Gold’s heart. He sighed.

“Look, I know it’s unfair if I demand you to take off your blindfold too, so... I'm going alone.”

He turned around, facing parallel to the beachfront.

A hand gripped his wrist tightly, holding him back, preventing him from walking away.

“You can't go,” said Silver, in a monotone. “You're not allowed to.”

“No, I'm not,” said Gold, softly. “But I still will.”

“What will you do out there? All alone, friendless? And lost?”

“I'll find my way. I don't need my family's wealth or fame to shelter me. I've proven as much.”

“What will I do without you?”

Silver's voice faltered, softening as if he was about to break into a sob.

It hit Gold like a rock. He swallowed, like he was trying to dislodge a stone in his throat. It didn't work.

“Gold, all this doesn't matter anymore,” he said, firmly. “All you have to do is put your blindfold back on, pretend you never saw anything, then things can go back to how it was.”

Gold turned around, and looked at him longingly. His small, angular face, his thin body, and his lovely, crimson hair. It never failed to take his breath away, no matter how many times he looked at him. He reached out and stroked his face, looking at how his skin rippled under his touch.

Silver held out his blindfold back to him, beckoning him to put it back on.

He was right. All he had to do was put his blindfold back on, and only the two of them would know. He could have a peaceful life in his town, he could still hang out with all his friends.

All he had to do was give up his Eyesight. The thing he'd wanted all his life.

“I... I can't.” His hand slipped away. “You may not feel this the same way I do, but... this is amazing, Silver. The thought of never, ever seeing this way again, it scares me, and I don't think I could live with that for the rest of my life...”

There was silence.

“You'd... leave me for that?”

Silver's voice sounded so sad, so desperate, that Gold felt his heart shatter into a million pieces.

For a moment, Gold felt like he could just leave Eyesight behind. He would do it for Silver. He would do anything for Silver.

And that, Gold realised with a dread, was exactly where the problem lied.

Love was just a series of complex chemicals, and rightfully felt like an addiction like it did with Silver. This love he had for Silver, the one that made him feel like he could achieve anything, the love that made him feel so free... It was the exact, intangible thing that Gold had tried to wrap his head around, that was keeping him chained down.

It suddenly occurred to him that he may have not been the only person to have thought of regaining Eyesight.

Maybe they were too cowardly to try. Maybe they were held back. Maybe they had found a reason to stay.

Maybe they fell in love.

“Yes.”

He realised something, that love wasn't a way out, or an escape. It was escapism.

Freedom, true freedom... was worth so much more than that.

Silver had completely frozen. If he felt any hatred or betrayal now, Gold couldn't blame him for it.

Gold looked at him sadly.

“I'm sorry.”

Gently, he cupped Silver's face with both hands, and brought his face closer. Their lips met, and Silver relaxed, leaning into the kiss, grabbing him on the back of his head and hungrily kissed back. They let themselves melt away at the euphoria, at the pure feeling of touch. But then they separated, and the feeling vanished instantly.

“Goodbye, Silver.”

Without another word, he slipped away from Silver's tight grasp, running along the waves away from Silver.

He didn't dare look back, in fear that he might change his mind if he did. Tears flowed out of his newly exposed eyes, blurring his vision, but Gold didn't need vision to run in a straight line, as far as he could.

He removed the clasp of his cape, letting it fly off his back. The large cloth fluttered in the wind, floating down right at Silver's feet.

Silver watched his lover run off into the distance, growing smaller and smaller, until he was merely a speckle of life in the distance that eventually faded away as well. He couldn't shout after him, his mouth felt too dry; he couldn't run after him either, his feet felt like they were glued to the sand.

He couldn't do anything.

He heard birds squawking above him, seeing two birds flying high, soaring into the sunset.

Was it his fault after all? For not being able to keep Gold with him?

He found the strength to kneel down and pick up his cape. He held it in one hand, and his blindfold in the other.

Silver wondered if maybe, just maybe, he could've run off with Gold, if he had agreed to remove his blindfold too.

Silver saw again, and now only one bird flew, flapping its lonely wings as it ventured into the darkening sky.

Was his aura playing tricks on him again? Silver was too tired to question anything anymore.

He hugged the cape, burying his face in it, whiffing Gold's familiar scent and choked up with emotion. The sun set, and Silver was still on the beach, hugging the cloth tightly, and cried silently.


End file.
